1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an operating fitting for a sliding door or window panel in which the stile at the leading edge is a structural member having two visible lateral walls with an empty interior chamber of the structural member between them.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many operating fittings of the aforementioned type are known in the art.
For obvious security reasons, to prevent removing the fitting from the outside of the panel, one such operating fitting is a simple maneuvering fitting or housing adapted to be fixed to the outside wall of the structural member, i.e. the wall of the structural member facing outward relative to the sliding panel. No fixing member of a fitting or housing of this kind must be visible.
An operating fitting of the above kind can equally be a lock fitting adapted to be fixed to the inside wall of the structural member, i.e. the wall of the structural member facing inward relative to the sliding panel, to enable the panel to be locked and unlocked from inside the room in which the panel is installed.
In a manner that is known in the art, an operating fitting of the aforementioned type includes a body adapted to penetrate into the chamber of the structural member through an opening formed in the corresponding visible wall of said member and a cover plate which is an integral part of the body and is adapted to be pressed against the outside face of the corresponding wall to cover and close said opening.
It is known in the art, for example, to provide an outside housing with two threaded tube sections projecting toward the inside of the chamber and each adapted to receive a screw passing through the cover plate of the lock fitting installed on the inside face of the structural member.
Also known in the art is a fitting, essentially a lock fitting, having near each end a fixing member adapted to be inserted with the body of the fitting into the corresponding opening in the structural member and having means adapted to inter-engage with the corresponding side surface and the inside edge of the adjacent transverse end of the opening in the structural member when the fixing member is clamped against the wall of the structural member by means of a screw passing through a hole in the cover plate of the fitting.
Although they are satisfactory, the above two embodiments have the essentially esthetic drawback of requiring a screw passing through each end of the cover plate and visible on the visible surface thereof.
FR-A-2 761 719 describes a lock fitting including a first fixing member which has one part at least adapted to retract elastically in the longitudinal direction of the body toward the center of said body to enable it to pass through the opening and to return elastically in the opposite direction to inter-engage with the corresponding side surface of said opening. The other fixing member can be a member fixed to the body and including means for inter-engaging with the side surface at the other transverse end of the opening.
This embodiment enables quick attachment of the lock fitting to the inside wall of the structural member by clipping it into place but prevents easy removal of the fitting. Also, using it to fix a maneuvering housing to the outside wall of the structural member is not recommended because it is theoretically possible, by applying a force to the cover plate in the longitudinal direction of the fitting, to cause the mobile fixing member to retract elastically and thus enable removal of the fitting.
The object of the present invention is to remedy the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art and to propose a fitting of the aforementioned type which is of simple and reliable structure and has no visible fixing means on the corresponding face of the structural member, although it is fastened to the corresponding wall of the structural member.
The invention provides an operating fitting for a sliding door or window panel whose stile at the leading edge consists of a structural member having two visible lateral walls between which is an inside chamber of the structural member, the fitting including a body adapted to penetrate into the chamber through an opening on the corresponding visible wall of the structural member and a cover plate which is an integral part of the body and is adapted to be pressed against the outside face of the corresponding wall to cover and close the opening, the fitting having in the vicinity of each end a fixing member including means adapted to bear on the structural member and on the body to press the cover plate against the corresponding visible wall, at least one of the fixing members being adjustable between a first position in which it is possible to insert the body through the opening and a second position in which the cover plate is pressed against the corresponding wall, wherein the adjustable fixing member includes a rotary clamping member adapted to bear on a location other than the visible face of the cover plate so as not to be visible on the corresponding visible face of the structural member, the rotary clamping member being adapted to produce a force clamping the cover plate against the corresponding visible wall of the structural member or to operate or immobilize means producing a force of this kind.
The above structure thus prohibits the use of a screw whose head is visible on the visible face of the cover plate of the fitting.
The rotary clamping member is therefore not visible on the visible face of the structural member. It produces a non-elastic force clamping the cover plate against the visible wall of the structural member, which prevents unauthorized removal of the fitting.
Other embodiments of the present invention will become apparent in the course of the following detailed description.